Page 23 of Bewitched By the Werewolf
I giggle, I can’t help it. The alcohol has me loosening up and it’s just too funny watching him squirm.
Ryder turns to watch me again but this time he’s focused on my lips, his unhappy face now slack and very intent on staring hard enough to burn a hole through steel.
“Is there something on my face?” I ask.
His eyes shoot up to mine then to the bar where Evelyn sets his dark golden beer. Caught ya.
“Nope. Nothing. Just noticing your affinity for red lipstick. It matches your hair.”
Oh, he likes my lipstick? I hadn’t worn it for him, but I also didn’t not wear it for him. I really have no idea why I decided to put it on before leaving. I was heading to the bar and it just seemed like the thing to do. Same as putting on the little black dress and lace trimmed thigh high stocking I bought atCloset Carousel. Make myself appealing so maybe a few local men would get chatty when loosened up by the liquor. I just hadn’t anticipated that man would be Ryder. Hoped for? Maybe. I’ll never admit it.
I flip my red locks over my shoulder and pull them to one side, exposing the side of my neck. I’m still wearing my leather jacket, but I don’t miss when Ryder steals a glance at my sliver of bared skin. Interest or reflex? From the tight hold he has on his pint as he lift it to his lips and downs half of it in one go, I’m going to say possibly both.
“Pink isn’t really my color.” I quip. “Red’s more my style. That and black.” I cross my legs towards him letting my foot bump against his leg. I don’t rub it or anything. With a guy like Ryder that would only push him away. I pull my foot back only moments after to a more appropriate position and resumestirring the ice in my drink, holding off on drinking anymore just yet.
Ryder just grunts and takes another gulp of beer. There he goes again not using his words. I let him have his moment of silence and wait for him to start up the conversation again. He may be a man of few words, but I can tell he just can’t stop himself from prodding. So, when he finally does speak, I already know what he’s going to ask before the words are even out of his mouth.
“So are you going to tell me know why you’re really in town?”
I laugh and then I do take a drink from my glass to prolong my answer just to bother him. When I set it back down on the bar I tilt my head to face him.
“I already told you. I’m here for the eclipse. That’s all. Just a city girl enjoying some countryside. Nothing exciting. Though if you’re offering to make it more exciting, I might be convinced to accept.”
His lips pinch into a thin line as he watches me. “No thanks. I think I prefer all my limbs attached and organs inside my body.”
I laugh out loud and slap the wooden bar top. “You’re a funny guy. But I don’t steal organs, unless you count all the hearts I’ve stolen and broken.”
“I think I believe you. It’s easy to see how a man could be drawn in.”
A moment of quiet passes over us as we watch each other. Ryder’s silver eyes darken to a deep grey as he doesn’t break eye contact. It’s kind of intense, but also enchanting. I’ve never seen a man with such beautiful eyes and I can’t force myself to look away. I don’t want to. They’re like two full moons trapping me in their hold. Much how I feel a werewolf would be hypnotized by the moon. Pulled in by its unearthly beauty and forced to reveal their true selves.
A prickle of goosebumps rolls up my spine and makes me shudder. I have a sudden desire to show myself to this man, present myself to him and let him have his way with me. What a strange sensation.
Our frozen moment of silence is broken by a pair of rowdy men cheering over their game of billiards, forcing both Ryder and myself to break that strange connection. His woodsy citrus scent washes over me again and I feel more lightheaded than half a drink should be able to accomplish.
Ryder chugs back the last of his beer and clanks the glass on the bar, slipping a bill from his pocket and placing it under the empty glass.
“Thanks Eve, I’ll be back later.” He turns to me and nods. “Tess.” Then he’s gone as quick as he came.
What a strange and sexy man.
Chapter 13: Ryder
Somehow Tess has managed to avoid me for an entire day. I had to give up my search for her yesterday after she confronted me and because I had dinner with my family and our guest last night. Turns out it was none other than Lottie, the female renting the cabin. Everyone found it endlessly amusing when she showed us the photo she took of Hunter in his wolf form. I didn’t get why everyone thought it was the most hilarious thing they’ve ever seen. It was just a picture. Lottie seemed nice enough, Hunter definitely seemed distracted by her and Ginger is practically her best friend already.
I made sure to check in with Ginger while there to see if Tess had posted anything else on her site. I could have looked it up myself, but I don’t have time for that. Ginger had nothing new to report which is a good thing. That means Tess hasn’t spotted anyone yet. I’ve been keeping my eye out for her all day, but she’s either holed up in her trailer or is way better at avoiding me than I am at following her. I thought I had caught a glimpse of red hair earlier but it vanished when I went looking for her. She’s slippery like that. Her ability to be as silent as a hunting wolf is disturbing.
When I found her just sitting on a barstool inBlue Moonwithout even trying, it was irritating to say the least. So wasthe way I reacted to her. She didn’t smell any different than she had before, but that didn’t stop my body from responding all the same. Places hardening and perking to attention. Tess is a beautiful woman. But she’s a woman, a human female, not a possible shifter mate. Therefor, according to the logic I’ve stuck with for fifty years, she’s not worth my time. Yet there’s something about her that keeps me focused on her.
I want to ignore her. I want her to tell me the truth. I want her to leave, but I also don’t. I like verbally sparing with her, and I hate verbalizing much with anyone. The way she sasses me makes me want to snark back at her, see what she’ll say next. Most of which I’m sure will annoy the shit out of me, but I do it anyways.
I’ll just have to be more vigilant. Keep an eye on her, make sure she’s behaving and leaves right after the blood moon, and try not to stare at her fuck me red lips anymore. I groan and rub a hand over my face. Fuck me and those red lips that were just begging to be smudged. I’ve never met someone quite as irritating and tempting all in one as Tess.
Hunter appears, driving down the street, and parks in the lot across fromBlue Moonnext toDottie’swhere I wait for him, leaning against my own truck. Black, just like Tess’s little dress that kept riding up those long legs.Damn it Ryder, stop thinking about her legs and focus on what’s important. Like her website and what she’s really looking for in Snowberry.The reminder of who Tess really is has me scowling enough to suppress any lingering unwanted desire for the redhead. At least for now.
Hunter jumps out of his truck and meets me at the tailgate. It’s been a few hours since my sparing match with Tess and I watched her leave thirty minutes ago, walking back to her trailer at the lake. If she had even of tried to get into a car I would have arrested her. And now I have a mental image of Tess in handcuffs in the back of my truck.Fuck.
“Everything alright? You look more moody than usual,” my brother so helpfully points out.
